Convert Your Moto 360 Smartwatch to a Pocket Watch via 3D Printing

Android Central’s Russell Holly heard about the Android Moto 360 smartwatch well before its release and, while he admired its design, he wondered about a pocket version that could quickly accessed and then easily stowed — with a fun throwback to the days when pocket watches reigned supreme. It would be less obvious or, for those people who prefer not to wear watches, less cumbersome than a conventional wrist device.

Moto 360 is Motorola’s smartwatch powered by the Android Wear platform. Released in the autumn of 2014, it uses Google Now with an easy user interface (including voice command), which is available to Android users through Google Search and Chrome, to help you organize your life. Whether you want to check your email, map a destination, get the forecast for the day, or check your calendar, you need only consult your smartwatch.

Or your smart pocket watch. Holly and the team at Android Central had been exploring 3D printing and he wondered if 3D printing could be used to create a smart alternative to the wrist version of the Moto 360. He acknowledged that he wasn’t pushing for a device that was more convenient, just a variation on a great theme.

Rather than reinventing the wheel, Holly did some browsing on Thingiverse to see if anyone had designed the kind of thing he was contemplating. He found user Laggylarry’s STL files for the Paracord band adapter for the Moto 360. Holly recalled, “The basic cartridge design already existed, so all I needed to do was mess with the existing files in some kind of STL file editor.” He tried making refinements using “a pair of CAD apps on Android,” but when that didn’t work he turned to SketchUp 2015, where he made the modifications he had in mind. After exporting his model to Cura, a desktop app used for preparing a print on the Ultimaker 2 3D printer, Holly printed his first version of the case.

The 360 fit too snugly in the first case, so Holly went back to SketchUp to make additional refinements. Using the Moto 360 as a smart pocket watch didn’t require much adjusting, although Holly noted a few limitations: “Obviously heart rate monitoring isn’t going to work (as the device isn’t on your wrist)…but the pedometer seems to work the same way when in my pocket.” Holly shared his refined version of the pocket watch case design and STL files on Thingiverse.

Ultimately, the drawbacks of converting to the pocket version of the Moto 360 were minimal and it comes down to preference. If you’re making a fashion statement, the pocket smart watch 3D printed in metal with a matching chain could be just the retro look you’re after.

What do you think about this just-for-fun adaptation? Is a smart pocket watch something you’d carry? Let us know your thoughts over at the Moto 360 Pocket Smartwatch forum thread at 3DPB.com.